The Manager's Assistant
by Houtori
Summary: Seishun's tennis team is finally complete again: Ryoma has returned from America & 3 exregulars are back in. This year, manager Inui Sadaharu has a new goal: get an assistant! And that he does [Pity the poor sophomore involved]. So begins the tale of...
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: _I **don't **own Tennis No Ohjisama/Prince of Tennis. If I did, there'd be a lot more chibi episodes for us to laugh and coo at...

_Author's Note:_ Firstly, this idea has been stuck inside my head for ages! So you can imagine my relief at finally getting it out so that I can regain my concentration back again. Secondly, as of now I have **no** pairings decided; I'm probably gonna 'go with the flow'. Thirdly, enough blabbering from me. Thank you for reading, and enjoy!

_Summary: _Seishun High School: The team is finally complete again, thanks to the return of freshman wonder Echizen Ryoma from America and 3 ex-regulars joining the tennis team again. Besides winning Nationals and being a regular again, manager Inui Sadaharu has a new resolution: obtain an assistant (a.k.a. guinea pig) to aid him. Fortunately (for him) he finds one in the form of the unsuspecting new sophomore entering Kaidoh's and Momo's class this year. Thus begins the tale of...

_**The Manager's Assistant**_

* * *

**Chapter One (a.k.a. How It All Began)**

* * *

"You are most definitely drunk."

"_I'm __**not**__ drunk! I'm not, I tell you!"_

"_Hai, he's not! __**I**__ am, hehehe…"_ _The first (and only sober) student shook his head in disapproval at the increasingly bizarre and wild antics of his fellow college mates. Right now the trio was celebrating; they had just finished all their examinations for that semester, and had immediately gone out after the final paper to 'party'._

_Who wouldn't after a nightmarish fortnight of important exams?_

"_Oi, oi, aren't you gonna drink anymore? I'll have your glass then!"_

'_Then again, maybe it had been a bad idea to visit a bar,' acknowledged the first teenager in his mind. With that, he decided to end the celebrations before his friends did something more stupid than what they were doing now (they were both pledging their firstborns; it was a sign of how really drunk they were that they were agreeing ecstatically to the idea). Sighing, he stood up, muttering, "I'll get the bill…"_

* * *

"… _And we all made it back in one piece! Isn't that great, Yoshi?" The third youth, a redhead, grinned drunkenly as he flopped unto the couch, his fellow drunk mirroring his action a few seconds later. Yoshi (apparently the only sober one in the trio) just ignored him, striding into one of the bedrooms linked to their living room. He returned moments later, hoisting a towel over his shoulder and holding a new set of clothes in his right hand._

"_Oi Yoshi, what're you doing?" This came from the black-haired scholar slumped next to the redhead (who had passed out and was currently snoring)._

"_I'm going to take a shower. Kazuki, I suggest you do the same. It'll lessen your headache tomorrow," the bespectacled teen briskly replied before locking the bathroom door behind him._

_Kazuki just groaned, the idea **not** appealing at all to him right then. Sleep was definitely a better option…_

_When Yoshi walked out of the bathroom 20 minutes afterwards, toweling his blue-dyed hair, he mentally groaned at the sight of his two flat mates snoring loudly on the couch. _'_Great, I'd have to deal with their hangovers tomorrow… Those idiots. Now where the heck did I put those pills?'_

* * *

(Over fifteen years later)

"Ah, Ryoma-kun! H-how long have you been back?"

"… Arrived in Japan yester-"

"**Ryoma-sama! **Horio-kun, Ryoma-sama's returned!"

"Echizen/Ryoma-kun! You're back from the States!"

They all were freshmen again. This time, though, they had entered Seigaku's sister school, Seishun Koukou.

Echizen Ryoma, former freshman wonder of Seigaku and tennis player extraordinaire, deftly ignored the comments being made by Horio Satoshi and the questions coming from Osakada Tomoka, Kato Kachiro and Mizuno Katsuo as he calmly ambled down the still-quite-empty hallways of Seishun High School (he wasn't an early riser, but today, being his first day of high school, was an exception, and anyway his mother and Nanako insisted on him going early).

"Ano, Ryoma-kun? Does the senpai-tachi know you're back?" He peeked out of the corner of his eye at the timid teenager ('_Ryuzaki-sensei's granddaughter,'_ his mind supplied helpfully) walking next to him, the other four having fallen behind when Horio had **tripped over his own feet**, before responding.

"No." Ryuzaki Sakuno smiled shyly; it seems Ryoma-kun was still as reserved as ever… oh well, Sakuno was used to his actions by now. "Would you like to know how the senpai-tachi are doing?" she volunteered.

This time Ryoma shot a longer glance at the brown-haired girl. "Ah." Sakuno took that as a yes, and eagerly begun summing up all the happenings since his farewell three years ago.

"Ano, where do I start? Ah, Tezuka-bochou first; He's the present captain of Seishun High School's Male Tennis Club, and Oishi-senpai retained the vice captain position as well. Both their injuries are fully healed now, I think."

'_As expected,'_ was the thought running through the Tennis Prince's mind.

"The Golden Pair still lives on. Kaidoh-senpai and Inui-senpai will probably also be regulars this year… Oh, Inui-senpai still makes his juices for the team…" The brown-haired girl stole a fleeting look sideways and was rewarded with the disgusted expression hanging around Ryoma's features, causing her to giggle slightly before a suspicious gaze from the golden-eyed freshman prompted her to continue.

"Eto… Besides that, Fuji-senpai, Taka-senpai and Momo-senpai didn't enroll in the tennis club when they first registered into high school…" This effectively caught Ryoma's attention, his features turning shocked for a second before they became serious once more. His voice, though, held a note of urgency as he clipped out a "What?"

"… Fuji-senpai joined the photography society for two years, and Momo-senpai entered this school's basketball team last year. Kawamura-senpai left tennis at the beginning of his first high school year; he decided to polish up his sushi chef skills during that time, but he resumed playing sometime at the end of last year. But don't worry Ryoma-kun, I'm sure all three will join the tennis club this year," Sakuno added when she noticed the expression on the Tennis Prince's face. The black-haired teen merely nodded once, his way of saying an unspoken 'arigatou' for the not-unwanted information.

A comfortable silence reigned for the rest of their journey towards their new classroom.

* * *

At the rate he was cycling now, Momoshiro Takeshi **would** make it in time for his first day of the new school term. That minor fact however **didn't** prevent the spiky-haired ex-tennis-now-basketball player from slowing down at all, zooming past another cyclist who had stopped at the left side of the gates to stare at the various buildings adorning Seishun's grounds. After a few minutes, said cyclist leisurely led his bike to the bicycle stands nearby, murmuring in English under his breath as he did so:

"Hm, so this is Seishun High School huh? Doesn't really seem like much to me…"

And thus our story begins…

* * *

**END OF CHAPTER ONE**

* * *


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: _I **don't **own Tennis No Ohjisama/Prince of Tennis. If I did, we'll finally get to see Jiroh play against Atobe, and maybe Sanada VS Yukimura too...

_Author's Note (Somewhat Urgent):_ It was once explained to me that **Koukou** actually means 'high school' in Japanese. Hence the usage of Seishun Koukou (Seishun High School). However, I'm debating whether to call it **'Seikou'** or just continue with the familiar '**Seigaku'**, so if you all have any preference, please do inform me! Also, as of today, I still haven't thought of any pairings, but if you think my fic implies any... well... Once again, thank you for reading, and enjoy!

_Summary: _Seishun High School: The team is finally complete again, thanks to the return of freshman wonder Echizen Ryoma from America and 3 ex-regulars joining the tennis team again. Besides winning Nationals and being a regular again, manager Inui Sadaharu has a new resolution: obtain an assistant (a.k.a. guinea pig) to aid him. Fortunately (for him) he finds one in the form of the unsuspecting new sophomore entering Kaidoh's and Momo's class this year. Thus begins the tale of...

_**The Manager's Assistant**_

* * *

**Chapter Two (a.k.a. Just Who Are You?)**

* * *

"Ohayou, Tezuka."

"Ah," Tezuka Kunimitsu nodded as he took a seat on the bus departing for Seishun High School, his face maintaining its emotionless look as he responded to his vice-captain's greeting.

Seated on the right side of the aisle separating them, Oishi Syuichiroh smiled, then resumed his engaging activity of staring out the window. Alas, term break was over already…

* * *

Kikumaru Eiji was (metaphorically) on Cloud Nine. In fact, he was happy enough to be alert and bounding up and down the path leading to the male tennis locker room. Why, you may ask?

This called for a simple answer: His favorite brand of toothpaste was being restocked today, and just in time too; he'd finished up the last tube shortly before school this morning. Eiji grinned joyfully; he was so going to purchase more toothpaste right after today's practice!

And so we leave Seishun's resident acrobat and move on…

(In case you're wondering the reason/s for Eiji to be at the clubroom so early in the morning, it's because he's waiting for his doubles partner there. Let's just leave it at that, ne?)

* * *

"93.6 chance that the team would… **enjoy **my latest brew…"

Er… perhaps Inui Sadaharu shouldn't be bothered while in the midst of conducting tests…

* * *

The third-year genius, Fuji Syusuke, was currently in his own class, History textbook open on his pristine desk with his ever-present smile on his handsome (to his fan club, at least) features. A sudden noise caught his attention, and he greeted the occupant of the desk next to his with a relaxed "Ohayou, Taka-san".

Kawamura Takeshi, sushi chef-in-training, returned the greeting politely as he took his seat, depositing his weathered bag on the floor. The bell would ring anytime now, he thought…

* * *

"What's that, you snake?"

"Hiss… I called you an ahou, you moron!"

"Then you're a dim-witted viper!"

"What's that, peach-head?"

"Baka mamushi!"

"Anata no yarou!"

"**WHY YOU-"**

"That's enough, Momoshiro, Kaidoh! Take your seats **now**!" The verbal fight came at a standstill at the sight of one of Seishun Koukou's most formidable teachers marching into the classroom, her face setting off clear warning bells in everyone's (especially the two sophomores in question) minds. Momoshiro 'humphed' before sitting down; Kaidoh scowled, storming off to his own spot at the back of the class. The other students just found their respective places as the English teacher took attendance, then immediately begun the first lesson of that year…

… well, until a knock sounded on the front door exactly 8 minutes after the bell had rung.

* * *

The minute Tori Hsia Fen walked into the sophomore classroom, all eyes turned to him.

He looked like the archetypal male student at a glance: short black hair, rimless spectacles and a sharp face with an apprehensive smile present. Height wise, he was not too tall but not too short either, with a supple figure and somewhat fair skin included. His voice, when he greeted their sensei in English, had an accent noticeable to those in possession of sharp hearing.

"Good morning teacher, I'm sorry for entering class late. I got lost on my way to visit the administrative office this morning." The female educator gave the black-haired newcomer a contemplative look before beckoning Tori over. 

"You're new, aren't you? Well, a quick introduction will suffice and then take your seat." The sophomore nodded, then turned to face the inquisitive looks of the class. Tori mentally sighed (he disliked **anything** even remotely resembling public speaking) before clearing his throat to begin. 

"Ahem. Good morning, I'm Tori Hsia Fen. I just moved into this neighborhood last week, so I'm still not used to this area…"

* * *

It was official: Seishun Koukou was one of the best schools he had ever been to.

Tori had already met and been introduced to at least 96 percent of his classmates by lunchtime. Luckily for him, they were generally nice, polite, friendly and helpful. He wondered, though, why most of the females often giggled, smiled or blushed more in his presence; it was rather creepy, and occasionally sent goose bumps up the new student's arms. The guys stuck to back pats (or back slaps, like a certain spiky-haired player that Tori couldn't remember the name of) and inquiring various tidbits of information such as where did he come from, what race was he, could he speak Japanese and et cetera. Tori calmly answered all questions in considerably fluent Japanese with a small grin etched on his features.

Hey, just because his whole introduction had been said in English **didn't** mean he couldn't speak Japanese!

* * *

"Are you coming to tennis practice today, Ryoma-kun?" Classes for the day had officially ended a minute ago; it was by chance that both Sakuno and Ryoma were classmates that year, and so had taken seats somewhat nearby to each other. The soft-spoken girl had just asked what was a rather important question to Ryoma, so he considered it for all of **two** minutes before nodding once.

Sakuno merely smiled in response then hoisted her brown bag to her shoulder. She called out a gentle "Mata ashita, Ryoma-kun" before exiting the classroom, leaving a slightly shocked Ryoma to his own devices.

'… _Did Ryuzaki just do what she did?'_

* * *

Tezuka watched the courts from his own classroom, window ledge serving as a temporary (and not safe, but he ignored that fact) seat while he analyzed the members doing warm-ups below.

"Tezuka, have you started choosing who will compete in next month's ranking matches?" A familiar voice sounded from the doorway, and Seishun Koukou's current male tennis captain turned his head back far enough to notice the two figures observing him. He gave a slight nod in acknowledgment of their presence, skillfully masking all signs of surprise at the identity of the second person (that is, if he was even surprised).

"Oishi." The player in question smiled; he was too used to Tezuka's monosyllabic speech to take offense at such a curt reaction. Tezuka continued with a greeting-cum-query to the other individual in the room. Said person was leaning against the wooden door, goggles, as always, hiding his eyes.

"Konbanwa, Yamato-senpai. What are you doing here?"

* * *

**END OF CHAPTER TWO**

* * *


	3. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer:_ I don't own Tennis No Ohjisama/Prince of Tennis. Wish I did, though... wouldn't we all want to see what happened to our dear regulars after Nationals?

_Author's Note:_ ... I blame the lateness of this chapter on the fact that I've let my guard down, and as such the horror known to all authors as "Writer's Block" has effectively ensnared me until now... Well, that aside, thank you for reading, and enjoy! Comment if you wish to, nya...

_Summary:_ Seishun High School: The team is finally complete again, thanks to the return of freshman wonder Echizen Ryoma from America and 3 ex-regulars joining the tennis team again. Besides winning Nationals and being a regular again, manager Inui Sadaharu has a new resolution: obtain an assistant (a.k.a. guinea pig) to aid him. Fortunately (for him) he finds one in the form of the unsuspecting new sophomore entering Kaidoh's and Momo's class this year. Thus begins the tale of...

_**The Manager's Assistant**_

* * *

**Chapter Three (a.k.a. Of Eventful Meetings & The WTH Proposal)**

* * *

Do you believe in fate, in destiny? Or maybe in luck, or perhaps chance?

Well, whatever your answer may be, it was very clear what Tori Hsia Fen would reply should the question be posed to him at this age: "What?"

(Very eloquently said, don't you think?)

It wasn't like the black-haired student had anything personal against chance, destiny, fate or luck; he just never really understood the notion of 'coincidences'. Tori had been raised under the principle that one should always control one's own path in life and that you created your own breaks, no one else. There was **no** such thing as 'coincidences'.

Yet the sophomore would someday say that yes, it was a twist of fate that his school life would change today…

… Or maybe as Momoshiro Takeshi so bluntly put it later: "Someone up there either hates you or thought it'll be fun to meddle with your life, and that's why this happened to you."

* * *

Despite all rumours, debates and whatever else one could get from the grapevine, the simple truth was that it all truly started in a Thursday. Ryuzaki Sakuno knows this for sure; how could she not, when she was in the center of it all?

Unusually enough, there were **no** early warning signs to indicate to Sakuno that that particular Thursday would be anything **but** ordinary. The freshman had woken up to pleasant morning air and a good breakfast, followed by a casual stroll to Seishun High School and subsequently her classroom. Classes had gone rather smoothly as well; Sakuno handed in all her completed assignments on time while English class (which was and still is a horror) was merely reading and analyzing a poem she already knew.

All in all, Sakuno felt that it was a good day…

… Until tennis practice, that is.

* * *

What happened during tennis practice, you ask? Simple: since she had completed her match and was therefore free, Sakuno was requested to go grab a new basket of tennis balls from the top shelf of a cupboard in the games storerooms.

All went smoothly before she, being the clumsy klutz she is, tripped.

And fell straight onto an unsuspecting black-haired sophomore.

* * *

There were times that Tori was really, really grateful for his fast reflexes. Not only were they of infinite use during a match, they had uses outside the court too, one of those being the ability to handle emergency situations well.

So it came as to no surprise to him that, upon hearing an 'Ah!" coming from above him, his initial reaction was to dodge before attempting to catch whatever that was falling his way.

What he **didn't** expect, though, was an alarmed-looking girl falling right into his arms… and a cute one, at that…

* * *

It could have been described as one of _those_ scenes that seemed to come straight out of a romance movie, or novel: girl needs stuff in high places beyond her reach, tries to get it, falls/trips, succumbs to gravity and plunges to certain pain… until a decent/good-looking/hot male, or even better, the guy of her dreams, somehow manages to save the damsel-in-distress and ends up playing Hero of The Day.

(Upon reflection, Tori's cousin would chide him for not continuing his apt description, though. Then again, romance was _**his**_ forte, not Tori's…)

Unfortunately, the extremely awkward atmosphere surrounding both students completely and utterly nipped any chance of romance occurring in the bud.

Besides, it should be duly noted that Tori was inwardly too busy congratulating himself (_'Nice catch!'_) whereas Sakuno was just feeling relieved that her face (or any other part, for that matter) hadn't met the dusty ground of the storeroom.

Luckily (for the reader, that is), the sound of something hitting the floor soon took up their attention, and both students looked up to see the contents of a particular basket come raining down around them.

"Ek/What the-!!"

_(The author would now like to mention that no Sakunos or Toris was hurt during the writing of this scene.)_

* * *

It wasn't until the last few balls were being picked up that Tori finally started up a decent conversation (The earlier "Gomen nasai!!" didn't count as such to him).

"Ne, do you play tennis?" Sakuno jumped a little, clearly startled, before a mild blush blossomed over her features. Her voice however remained steady; it helped too that when she glanced at her senpai, his eyes were twinkling, giving him the image of a mischievous kid. The pig-tailed girl smiled as she gave her answer.

"Hai." Tori gave the brown-haired girl a curious look.

"Should I ask if you're good at it? Or maybe… on second thought, never mind. I'll just help you carry this instead!" True to his word, the second-year swiftly took the basket of yellow balls from a protesting Sakuno, grinning cheerfully as she tried in vain to retrieve her basket.

"D-demo-!"

Tori briskly walked off, leaving the stammering girl in his wake. At least, that was what he planned to do until a shy voice piped up, "Ano, senpai, the courts are that way…"

"…"

"?"

"… Right, I knew that!" And Tori and Co did a 180-degree turn before resuming their journey.

* * *

"Tori-sen-"

"-Stick with Fen, alright? It sounds bizarre if I call you Sakuno-chan and you address me with Tori-senpai. Too much keigo for my liking."

"… Ok… Fen-senpai, do you play tennis?"

"Hm? Oh no… No, I don't. I play badminton instead. I leave all the tennis tricks to my cousins, they're the ones totally obsessed with the sport." A look of bemusement sketched itself over Sakuno's face upon hearing that.

"You have tennis-obsessed cousins?" Her upperclassman smiled sheepishly.

"Well, obsessed might be a rather strong word… But yeah, they're playing in the high school circuit now. You might have heard of th-"

"-Ryuzaki! Did you get the balls?"

'_Ah, we've arrived at the courts. Oh well…'_

"Well, Sakuno-chan, I'll be on my way now…," brushing off the heartfelt "Arigatou!", the sophomore waved her kouhai off with a cheerful "Mata raishuu!" before heading back to the storerooms.

'_Hm, I wonder if the racquet I was eyeing is still there?'_

* * *

It was not until next week, though, that the aftereffect of that chance meeting was truly felt.

For, you see, their entire conversation had been within a certain data-crazy third-year's ear range…

* * *

"I have a preposition for you."

Inui Sadaharu calmly adjusted his spectacles as he scrutinized the features of the (comparatively) shorter student standing opposite him.

"And what would that be, Inui-senpai?" Tori shifted his bag from his left hand to his right, wondering just why he was here, in this secluded place, to meet the infamous data-collector of Seikou men's tennis team during lunch break.

'What could be urgent enough to force him to disturb my lunch break? Considering that this is our first ever meeting…' The transfer student watched Inui warily as the third-year scribbled something into his green notebook before looking at Tori again.

"Are you interested in being Seikou's male tennis club assistant manager, Tori Hsia Fen?"

* * *

**END OF CHAPTER THREE**

* * *


	4. Chapter 4

_Disclaimer: _Nope, I still don't have any ownership rights to Tennis no Ohjisama, for if I did I'm not so sure there'd ever be a New Prince of Tennis…

_Summary: _Seishun High School: The team is finally complete again, thanks to the return of freshman wonder Echizen Ryoma from America and 3 ex-regulars joining the tennis team again. Besides winning Nationals and being a regular again, manager Inui Sadaharu has a new resolution: obtain an assistant (a.k.a. guinea pig) to aid him. Fortunately (for him) he finds one in the form of the unsuspecting new sophomore entering Kaidoh's and Momo's class this year. Thus begins the tale of...

_**The Manager's Assistant**_

_**

* * *

**_

**Chapter Four (a.k.a. That In Which Even More Meetings Occur, and Annoyance/s Met)**

_**

* * *

  
**_

It was four in the morning, and Tori still could not sleep. Could not even catch forty winks, which left him in a rather bad mood, for he knew that the lack of sleep would make its mark known on his features and attitude later in the day, and not in a good way at all.

The source of his sad state-of-affairs was simple and known to him, though, and the tired teen, not for the first and certainly not the last time, swore mentally at it.

'_Damn you Inui-senpai!'_

(Fortunately for Inui Sadaharu, he was too deeply asleep to suddenly get the urge to sneeze. It was just as well, since he would have been repeatedly doing so throughout the night were he awake.)

Tori tossed and turned in his bed, even as his mind ran through the recent chat he had had with the tennis club's data specialist over and over. Try as he might, he couldn't make sense of certain points in what Inui-senpai had said; in fact, he was sure that some pieces of said exchange had no sound or logical basis whatsoever! Yet the senior had tempted him by offering as part of the deal what Tori wanted, needed even, and in the end he had made a decision, even though he was second-guessing it (still!). The infuriating part was that even when he didn't want to think about the situation, his brain would bring it up, unbidden, and that also at the most unfortunate of times…

Like now, for instance: when all he wanted to just sleep in peace!

'_Darn you, my oh-so-off-timing mind!'_

Finally the sophomore gave up all attempts to seek the Sandman, and wearily arose, feet taking him to the bathroom as he begin his morning routine: brush teeth, wash up, change into uniform, head to the kitchen to make/cook breakfast before setting out for school…

All in all, it was just another start to a typical school day, albeit grudgingly earlier than usual.

* * *

"_I don't believe this…" Tori let his voice trail off into a mere whisper; his eyes had gone wide with shock and his jaw was just about to drop open in disbelief._

"_95.3% that you would not," Inui stated, his pen pausing momentarily at the gobsmacked expression on the sophomore's face. As Tori didn't look like he would be able to speak coherently any time soon without some prompting, the third-year made a decision to swiftly change the subject._

"_Am I right in assuming that you are an accomplished doubles specialist in badminton, Tori-san?" Alright, perhaps a tad too abruptly, but it seemed to work; Tori still looked stunned, but had regained enough wits to weakly nod at that._

"_Then there exists a 74.2% chance that you can easily substitute as a doubles back-up, should we require one urgently during the tennis tournaments." Tori frowned, cutting in with his interjection._

"_That doesn't make any sense at all, Inui-senpai. Firstly, I'm a **badminton** player, not a **tennis** player… And don't you already have more than enough players in the tennis club to choose from? Anyway, what does that have to do with your preposition, senpai?" Despite the general increase in Tori's volume, Inui remained calm, using his forefinger to push up his spectacles as he waited for the other to finish his roll of queries. Once the sophomore had ended, the data player continued talking as if he had never been interrupted. His next words, however, left Tori speechless, mouth agape and mind in a whirl:_

"_I can say with 100% that I can perhaps ascertain the reason why you entered Seikou, instead of Hyoutei, where your cousin currently studies at."_

* * *

It took a few days before the conversation with Inui ceased to drive Tori to the point of being insomniac; by the time this state came about, it was the end of a Friday, and the start of a rare homework-free (and thus stress-free) weekend.

Given the circumstances, the black-haired male did what any normal teenager stuck at home would do: he whooped and switched on the TV, surfing channels until he found a show worth watching (_'Now, to Glee or not to Glee? Or be entertained by Durarara?'_), then went to raid the larder for tidbits to snack on. Munching on a sour-cream-and-onion crisp and in a cheerful mood, he took a passing glance at the huge calendar hanging on the kitchen door on his way out and absent-mindedly noted the date.

It wasn't until hours later, though, that the significance of the date he had glimpsed actually hit his consciousness, hard; Tori sharply sat up, back ramrod-straight and no longer slouching, and let out a few choice words, eyes hastily checking the time as he did so.

'_Just after five-thirty… Good, he's free, so I can call him now and still fulfill that promise by arranging something for next week…'_

A casual saunter brought him to the house phone; having quickly calmed down, Tori smiled serenely as he picked up the receiver and dialed a number, one nearly forgotten by months of non-usage. After a few minutes of listening to a monotonous dialing tone, someone picked up, and a smooth voice echoed pleasantly into the sophomore's right ear.

"Hai, moshi moshi?"

* * *

Atobe Keigo, captain of Hyoutei High School's Tennis Club and filthy-rich diva, was for once thankful that his transport was late.

On retrospect, he supposed that this entire situation was slightly his fault (Keyword here being **slightly**). The narcissistic captain had an after-club meeting with Sakaki-sensei that he estimated would last a minimum two hours. Much to his consternation, it had finished within 90 minutes; consequentially he was now alone, waiting for his driver. Letting out an irritated sigh (_'Ore-sama shouldn't be waiting for anything!'_), Atobe flipped open his newly-acquired Nokia N-series equipment…

… And paused momentarily, cellphone going unnoticed in favor of the scene opposite him.

* * *

'Hm… 23 minutes already…' Oshitari Yuushi thought as he leant against the wall, eyes closing in an attempt to steal some precious forty winks. The tensai of Hyoutei had been waiting very, very, **very** patiently since the end of tennis practice; he had an appointment with an old acquaintance, and he was determined to keep it, even if it meant waiting **this** long… Well, he supposed he could always guilt-ride his associate later.

'_Oh, the many ways I can use this to my advantage…'_

Oshitari heard the sound of running feet headed his direction a few seconds later, and languidly opened his eyes in time to see his black-haired contact skid to a stop in front of him, drawing in deep breaths of air as he begin explaining.

"S-sorry about… coming late… was helping Inui-senpai… with his latest juice…" Tori gasped out between breaths. Oshitari stoically nodded, hoisted his tennis bag further up his shoulder and waited for the Seigaku sophomore to start breathing normally again before walking away.

"… And that's why I'm la – Hey Yuushi, where're you going?" Tori exclaimed as he ran to catch up with the blunette. Neither high-scholars noticed a certain tennis captain approaching them…

* * *

"And who is this, Yuushi? Ore-sama demands you introduce him immediately."

… Well, not for another minute, that is, but that's besides the point here.

Tori turned around at the sound of someone addressing Oshitari. Said teenager nearly gave into the urge to groan, but stifled it speedily; he **was**, after all, a tensai, and his cool demeanor had to be kept up as much as possible. He managed to maintain his stoical expression as he faced Atobe, who had a smirk present on his features. Before the blue-haired player could say anything, though, Tori spoke up.

"Hyoutei High School's captain Atobe Keigo, I presume?" Said diva blinked once, temporarily caught off-guard before he swiftly assumed his natural air again.

"Ore-sama's reputation must have vastly exceeded even ore-sama's personal expectations if ore-sama's name and position is known by an unknown international visitor which ore-sama has never met before this day!"

An irritated twitch formed on Tori's eyebrow and he promptly snapped back, "Really? Honestly, when I first heard your name I thought it was the weirdest name I'd ever heard in my life, period. Heck, I wasn't even sure that my ears were functioning properly!"

(Of course, Tori being Tori, the remark didn't turn out as sarcastic as intended, but Atobe got riled up anyway. Surprising, ne? Or maybe not…)

The duo started bickering as Hyoutei's prodigy looked on and wondered just how had he gotten into such a volatile scenario. Maybe if he slipped away and met Tori later somewhere far, far, **far** away from now…

"Hey Yuushi, just where do you think **you're** going?"

"Ore-sama demands you side with your captain instead of this… this… this impudent and uncivilized child here!"

"Just who are you calling an insolent gaki, you arrogant, pompous, egoistical narcissist!"

"What does that mean? Ore-sama is **NOT** narcissistic!" Tori just gave the Hyoutei captain a look of utter disbelief as Oshitari hid his face in his palm, sighing softly. He mentally swore as the two picked up from their temporary pause in arguing, then pondered on what course of action to do next.

It took Oshitari Yuushi, tensai of Hyoutei, a mere 4 minutes to come up with an applicable idea. He smiled triumphantly; perhaps he could stop the duo after all…

* * *

A fortnight passed before any of the Seikou tennis players met Atobe again. This time, though, it was Momoshiro's and Ryoma's turn to be graced with the gray-haired diva's presence at a place visited infrequently by him: the street tennis courts.

The first sign of the appearance of the Hyoutei team was heard rather than seen as a loud shout of "Oi!" echoed across the courts. Gyokurin's Izumi and Fukawa, Momoshiro, Ryoma and Tachibana Ann turned as one to face/stare at the various players watching from the sidelines. Atobe, Shishido Ryou and Mukahi Gakuto had smirks decorating their faces; Ootori Choutarou gave them a small smile; Oshitari, Kabaji Munehiro and Hiyoshi Wakashi retained their expressionless features; Akutagawa Jirou snored.

"They are so annoying…" Nods of agreement came from Momo and the Gyokurin pair in response to Ann's muttering. Ryoma just pulled his cap lower; he was **not** in the mood to deal with the Monkey King today, so hopefully if he were ignored, Atobe would leave.

"Ore-sama is not annoying, Ann-chan." Apparently Hyoutei's captain not only possessed an enormous ego, he also had pretty sharp hearing. Atobe stood and moved away from his position, mildly offended as he headed for the exit. He paused a second before descending the stairs.

"Another thing. Momoshiro, send my regards to Tezuka. Tori too, while you are at it," the diva added as an afterthought before leaving, all but one member of his team following in his footsteps. Oshitari briefly hung back to address the power player.

"Send my greetings to Tori as well. Thanks." And with that last request all traces of Hyoutei's tennis team vanished from the street courts, leaving five stunned and/or confused players in their wake.

* * *

"_So what do you say, Tori-san? The deal is mutually beneficial: I get an assistant manager for the team, and you get access to all the data I have and will obtain, which may help you fulfill your goals for entering this school faster." _

_Inui looked at Tori as he spoke, trained eyes taking note of the facial motions on the other's face. Clearly the sophomore had some doubts remaining, but his next words summed up his response to the entire idea:_

"_Well, if that's the case, I might as well give it a go…" A slender finger nervously adjusted a pair of spectacles, a hesitant smile appearing after. "… It's a deal then."_

_

* * *

_

**END OF CHAPTER FOUR**


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